Acknowledgment of Wronging
by Pyrrhical
Summary: Or better known as an apology. Yes. Genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropists say sorry too. They just aren't very good at it.


Tony takes in a couple of quick breaths, as if he is about to enter a fight.

He would very much rather be entering a fight. But after Ultron, he realizes that even the great Tony Stark makes mistakes and it is about damn time to atone for them.

 _Language,_ he thinks to himself, mocking Steve. It has become a habit of sorts for him and all the Avengers really. Steve does not appreciate it, but still smiles.

Focus. He needs to focus.

He had been talking to Vision recently about his guilt. Being an android doesn't stop Vision from being a great therapist or adviser.

 _"What can I do? Donate all my money to charity, shave off my luscious hair, become a monk and live in the Himalayans?"_

 _"I do not think that those are the best course of actions. Doing so will neither reverse the mistakes you have made nor will it counteract them. Also, I do not think Ms. Potts would be very pleased with that decision."_

 _"That's the problem buddy." Tony said, sitting up from the long chair that he was previously laying down on. "There is nothing I can do to reverse or counteract my mistakes."_

 _"An apology is a good place to start, or so the internet says." the android looked up from the tablet he was holding._

 _"Easy!"_

As it turns out, it is not easy.

So that is why he is here, outside of Wanda's bedroom rather than out drinking. Granted, he did have a few drinks before coming because he really does not apologize much. He has no experience.

He raises his fist, ready to knock on the door in front of him, but he stops.

What is he suppose to say? 'I'm sorry I killed your family.' Because he kind of did. Not personally with his bare hands or one of his suits, but he built the weapons that killed her family. Her parents were killed by a Stark Industries' mortar shell and her brother died because of this whole Ultron mess, which happened because of him. So in a way, he might as well have shot them himself.

He starts to feel like an idiot standing outside her door and is thankful that none of the other Avengers are in the building.

"Come on Stark, it's just three words. Three little words."

He takes another breath and knocks. Three sharp knocks echoes off the door and he thinks she might not even be in her room. But that is not right. He has checked the cameras, he knows she was in there, in a totally non-stalker way.

He is about to walk away when she opens her door and looks at him.

"Stark." she says, her Sokovian accent still heavy.

"Wand-" he starts off, but stops himself. They aren't exactly the best of friends, or friends at all. More like acquaintances that have a slight hostility, but not to the point of hatred. At least that was how he saw them.

They were complicated.

"Maximoff," he greets.

"What do you want?"

And he winces at her tone. She no longer wants rip his heart out like when they first met, but there is still some harshness in her voice. Or maybe it is the accent. Eastern Europeans with accents often speak English with a harsher tongue.

She looks at him expectantly, which makes since because he is the one who knocked on her door disrupting her from whatever she was previously doing.

"Is this a bad time? I could come back late-"

"What do you want?" she asks again, definitely not the accent.

He tells him to get a hold of himself. He is acting like a boy who has never talked to a girl before.

"I just wanted to say that I am sorry. It's my fault, all of it. I'm sorry for what happened, for what I did. Your parents and your brother, they deserved to live."

She nods her head. Her eyes are glassy and he guesses that is why she does not look him in the eye.

"Thank you." her voice is raw and sad. She then turns around and closes the door behind her.

He raises his hand to stop the door.

"I-" he hesitates. He could have left, but he doesn't because he can hear his conscience telling him not to. It's been a while since he has listened to his conscience. "I've been wanting to apologize since I found out about your parents, but with the whole world at the verge of destruction I never got a chance to apologize, to the _both_ of you. I know it can't be easy, living with the people that you have thought was your enemy for so long. I don't blame you for having a grudge against me."

He can see her face soften, a good sign that he was going in the right direction.

"I can't reverse or counteract my mistakes," he repeats from his talk with Vision. "But I want to do something. Anything. So I made this."

Tony reaches in his pocket and pulls out a box, a jewelry box. He opens it to reveal two rings. One is beautifully symmetrical, red metal flowing freely like magic. The second is metallic blue, with the metal making zigzags to create something that looks oddly similar to lightning.

"It is beautiful." she says, sounding out of breath.

He gestures for her to hold the box, which she does. Her fingers move so gently as if she is holding glass. She is shaking. He hopes it is because the gift is so moving, not because she is shaking from anger.

Looking at the single tear that rolls down her cheek, he thinks it is the former.

"The red one was for you and the blue one for Pietro, obviously, but after what happened... I made some adjustments."

He takes the two rings, one in each hand and lines them on top of another. Applying a little pressure, and the rings click into place with each other. Alone, they had their own unique pattern, but together, they formed something new altogether. Red and blue swirling together, an enchanting design.

"A little reminder if you ever feel alone or you miss him, that he's part of you. A piece of him will always be intertwined with you."

He separates the rings and place them back in the box, closing the lid in her hands.

"I'm usually more of a machine or gadget kind of guy and not a jeweler, so the designs-"

"Are perfect. Thank you," she says looking at him. For the first time in a while, he sees her smile, and probably for the first time ever, she is smiling because of him.

He has a warm feeling in his heart that engulfs the guilt. He forgets how guilt even feels.

"Well they are just rings. I didn't know if you wanted it to shoot lasers or to transform into a shield or spray perfume."

"Just rings." she repeats, more to herself.

"Yeah, so if you want me to add anything onto them, just tell me-"

"They are perfect just the way they are. Thank you Tony."

And then he understands. The meaning of the rings, the symbolism of the twins is enough. Nothing, not lasers or missiles could make the rings any better.

He smiles at her. "You're welcome Wanda."

* * *

Tony is still smiling when he and Rogers pass by in the halls.

"It's a nice thing, what you did for her."

He stops and then turns around, walking in pace with the captain.

"What?" he asks.

"It was a very heartfelt apology. I didn't know Tony Stark knew how to apologize, I underestimated you."

"It was more of an acknowledgement of wronging-"

"Call it whatever you want. It was still an apology." Steve says, leaving Tony standing in the halls.

It seems that the building was not as empty as he originally thought it was, but nothing can wipe the smile off his face, or destroy that warm feeling in his heart.

And weeks later when Dr. Cho tries to remove the rings so that she can properly bandage Wanda's injured hands, and Wanda refuses, Tony smiles even more and he feels warmer than ever.

Dr. Cho tries to convince Wanda, but the Avenger refuses.

"You never take them off." Dr. Cho says, finally giving up and working on the injured hands of a stubborn young woman.

"It seems apologizing has helped." Vision says to him.

"It has," he admits and looks up to see Steve smiling as well.

"Apology." Steve says in the same mocking way that Tony usually says 'language' to mock Steve.

"That's not going away anytime soon."


End file.
